Past work has found that negativity and identity language both predict online engagement.
In this working paper, we find that engagement is highest when negativity and identity language are combined -- especially if an *out-group* identity term is used.
Thanks very much to everybody who chimed in on this thread about attention --I wrote up some notes!
My conclusion from the discussion is that polisci should coordinate on an info board / faux feed design to study (probs v. heterogeneous effects on attention)
alexandercoppock.com/attention.pdf
💥Postdoc call 💥
Join my @erc.europa.eu project #YOPOW at Aarhus University
🎇 3-y position (possibility of 1-y extension)
❓How societal norms give rise to biased beliefs about political power in youth
🤖 Computational social science (large-scale text & image data)
Deadline May 15: bit.ly/4hIpSeD
🎉 I am THRILLED to announce that I will be starting at Colby College as an assistant prof. Of Psychology In Fall 2025! 🎉
I’ll be starting the ExPo Lab, and will be focused on working with undergraduates to study the causes and consequences of extremism and polarization.
🚨 Big News for European Political Science 🚨
We’re thrilled to announce the launch of the European Political Science Society (EPSS): a new, member-led, not-for-profit association built to support our scholarly community.
🔗 epssnet.org
Here’s a thread with everything you need to know.
🧵
Our findings reveal that news media companies have an incentive to produce news headlines containing out-group derogation to maximize engagement, which may, in turn, heighten animosity between groups.
This was led by @jesperrasmussen.bsky.social @steverathje.bsky.social @crobertson500.bsky.social